Electrical connector



March 18, 1941. w. R. YOUNG ELECTRICAL co'NN-scT R Filed Oct. 31-} 1939 Inventor- Wilham R.Young.

' by His Attorneg Patented Mar. 18, 1941 cme'rarcsr. CONNECTOR William R- Young, Fairlield, Comp, assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application October 31, 1939, Serial No. 302,176

3 Claims. (01. 173 -269) My invention relates to an electrical connector, and more particularly to a connector adapted to be snapped on to a, contact prong of an electrical device such as a, reflector lamp. An'object' of my invention is the provision of an improved connector of the type described which is adapted firmly to grip a contact prom and which is composed of relatively few parts so that it may be manufactured at low cost.

' In the accompanying drawing Fig. 1 is a view showingthe connector mounted on a reflector lamp such as an automobile headlightj Fig. 2 I

I automobile headlight. The connector is so designed that one may be attached to eachelectrical conductor leading to the lamp; in this manner a connector is mounted on each of the lamp contact prongs. This means that the connectors must be small enough to be assembled in side by side relationship on the lamp prongs and, at the same time, they must be constructed in a manner to. insure good electrical contact with the lamp atall times.

In Fig.1 of the drawing, the automobile reflector lamp i2 is shown mounted in a well or casing l3 extending outwardly from an automobile fender H. The lamp is seated within a carrier member I! and is held in position by a 5 spacer ring l6 secured to the carrier'by tightening bolts ll. Adjustment of the position of the lamp is provided for by a clamping block l8 which surrounds the body of the lamp and which.

is tiltable between a spring l9 and an adjusting bolt 20. During adjustment the carrier memy' ber pivots around the pins 2 I The lamp mounting forms no part of the present invention, it being the subject matter of the'copending appli- ,cation of Daniel'K. Wright, Serial No. 143,504,

filed May 19, 1937, which becamea patent numshaped front plate 22 is provided with a face portion 23 formed at each end with arms 24 and 28 55 which extend rearwardly from the face of the plate. The upper arm 24 is provided with a. narrower tang 26, while the lower arm 25 is likewise provided with a rearwardly extending tongue 21. In order to receive the contact prong of a reflector lamp, or similar electrical device, the face of the plate is provided with a keyhole slot 28. Inasmuch as the lamp contact prong is provided with an enlarged head, as shown in Fig. l, itmay be inserted through the large opening in the keyhole slot and then moved along the slot to a point where it is retained behind the narrower portion thereof. Secured to the plate 22 is a substantially V-shaped backing member 29 having angularly disposed legs 30 and 3|. The tang end 26 0! the upper arm 24' extends through an opening 32 in the leg 3| of the backing member and is bent over, as shown at 33 in Fig. 4, to securethe upper portion of the backing member to .the front plate. Similarly, the tongue 21 of the lower arm 25 extends through openings 34 in 96 both of the legs 30 and 3| of the backing member and is then bent downwardly, as shown at 35, to secure the lower portion of the backing member to the front plate. In this manner the front plate and backing member are held securely to- 25 gether in; rigid position. The upper arm 24 of the front plate is provided with an abutment edge 36 formed -by the tang 26 and this edge-engages the inner wall of the backing member 29 so that when in assembled relation the leg 31 of the back 30 ing member is spaced from the face portion 23 of the front plate. Similarly, an abutment 31 on the lower arm 25 engages the leg 30 of the backing member to space the front plate from this. member. This means that a space is provided between the front plate 23 and the leg 3| oi the backing member in which the angularly disposed leg 30 of the backing member is positioned to form, in effect, a bearing member for engaging the enlarged head ofthe contact prong.

Since the backing strip 29 is formed of sheet metal, such as spring .bronze, the bearing member 30 provides a flexible or resilient abutment for engaging the face of a lamp prong when the latter is inserted in the keyhole slot 28. The bearing member biases theprong firmly into engagement with the keyhole slot to lock it in po- 4 sition. The upper end of the leg 30 is provided with a tongue 38 which projects 'into the keyhole slot and guides the leg 30 to prevent it from becoming twisted or bent during insertion of the contact prong; in addition, the tongue acts as a stop for the lamp prong. At the end adjacent tongue 38 leg 30 is formed with acurved surface 39 which closely grips the contact prong when the 5s latter is mounted in seated position within the.

keyhole slot. To increase the pressure of the bearing member against the face of the prong a spring lit is disposed between the legs I! and ill to bias the leg 30 into'engagement with the contact prong. At one end the spring engages the curved portion 39 of the flexible leg 30, while at the other end it is seated-within a recess ll in the leg 3|, this assembly being shown by Fig. 4. To guide the end of the contact prongalong the length of the slot and to stiffen the face plate 23, the sides of the plate are bent over as shown at 42.

The tongue 21 is made long enough for attachment to a conductor 43; the latter extends through an opening 44 in the tab member and is soldered or otherwise secured thereto. The assembled connector may be placed within a resilient rubber boot or housing 45 which completely encloses the connector with the exception of the face plate 23. This means that the connector is protected from dust and dirt.

To mount the connector upon the lamp prong it is simply necessary to-insert the head of the prong into the large end of the keyhole slot and pulldown on the connector so that the head of the prong snaps into position within the curved portion 39 behind the narrower portion of the slot. During movement of the contact prong to position within the slot the bearing member 30 is flexed about its V end and the spring 40 is compressed. Flexure of the bearing member is provided for by the slot 34 which permits move-. ment of the member relative to the arm 25. In seated position the connector grips the lamp prong tightly and cannot be shaken loose by jars and vibrations incident to driving of the automobile on which the reflector lamp is mounted. The rubber boot 45 protects the connector from dust and dirt and, at the same time, insulates the exposed portions of the connector and makes it easy to handle.

While the connector has been illustrated and described as attached to the contact prong of an automobile reflector lamp, it should be manifest that the connector may be used with other electrical devices. Due to the fact that the connector is composed of only four parts, two of which are stampedfrom sheet metal, it will be apparent that it may be manufactured and assembled at low cost.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. A connector for use with a contact prong comprising'a U-shaped gmeallic plate having a face portion and opposed arms, said plate having a keyhole slot in the face portion, a substantially V-shaped backing member, one of the legs of the V forming a base engaging the opposed arms to secure said plate and backing member together, the other leg of theV being disposed between the face portion of said plate and said base for engaging the face of a contact prong when mounted in said keyhole slot and a spring between the legs of the V-shaped backing member biasing said other leg into engagement with the face of the contact prong.

2. ,A connector for use with a contact prong comprising a U-shaped metallic plate having a face portion and opposed arms, said plate having a keyhole slot in the face portion thereof, and

a substantially V-shaped backing member, one

of the legs of the V forming, a base engaging the opposed arms to secure said plate and backin member together, the other leg of the V being disposed between the face portion of said plate and said base for engaging the face of a contact prong when mounted in said keyhole slot.

3. A connector for use with a contact prong comprising a U-shaped metallic plate having a face portion and opposed arms, said plate having a keyhole slot in the face portion thereof, a substantially V-shaped backing member, one of the legs of the V forming 'a base engaging the opposed arms to secure said plate and backing member together, the other leg of the V being disposed between the face portion of said plate and said base for engaging the face of a contact prong when mounted in saidkeyhole slot, a tongue on said other leg extending into the keyhole slot and forming a stop for the contact prong, and a spring between thelegs of the V-shaped backing member biasing said other leg into engagement with the face of the contact- D E.

Will-1AM R. YOUNG. 

